I read the saddest story ever this morning. A beautiful, vibrant woman named Geraldine Largay, or Inchworm, was found dead in her tent, almost two years after losing her way along the Appalachian Trail.

I've done Half Dome more times than I can remember. It's an amazingly beautiful 18-ish-mile hike in Yosemite National Park, and everyone who can (and almost everyone can, with an early enough start) should do it at least once.

This will be your reward.

But Eva, you might be thinking, It's hard to get a permit! I can't do Half Dome without a permit!

There's simple solution to the permit problem. Go during the off-season, shoulder season or whatever you want to call the months of October-March. You know -- the times when you don't need a permit.

Check the conditions first, obviously -- you probably don't want to do Half Dome in a blizzard, or run into unexpected road closures or anything. But if it looks like the weather's going to cooperate, there's no good reason not to go during the cooler months.

But Eva, you may be wondering, Aren't the cables down October-March? Astute observation. The cables will be down -- but they will still be there.